Pope Francis has issued a worldwide invitation to all Catholics to participate in the upcoming Synod of Bishops. The theme of this Synod is For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission.
The word synod is rooted in Greek and means “same road” or “journeying together.” Through this synodal process, Pope Francis would like to invite every Catholic to prayerfully reflect and learn together about how God is calling us to be as the Church in the third millennium. Enlightened by the Word of God and united in prayer, we will be able to discern the processes to seek God’s will and pursue the pathways to which God calls us – towards deeper communion, fuller participation, and greater openness to fulfilling our mission in the world.
Journeying Together – The Archdiocesan Synthesis II (April 2024) English/Spanish
Following the Synod of Bishops’ four-week gathering in October 2023, the Holy See added a new “interim phase” to the worldwide Synod on Synodality. In this interim phase, each U.S. diocese was asked to hold 2-3 additional listening sessions during Lent 2024 to gather more input from the Catholic faithful around focused questions on Church structure and leadership. Our archdiocesan summary report, Journeying Together – The Archdiocesan Synthesis II reflects what was heard from the faithful on these guiding questions. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will blend this document with all other diocesan reports, to generate a national summary for the Holy See in Rome, which will then compile these national summaries to help form the agenda for the next Synod of Bishops gathering in Rome in October 2024.
A Synodal Church in Mission (October 2023) English/Spanish
The Synod of Bishops met in Rome on October 4-29, 2023 to commence the Universal phase of the Synod on Synodality. A summary report titled A Synodal Church in Mission is the synthesis of their nearly four weeks of dialogue. This synthesis is not a final document, but rather an instrument at the service of ongoing discernment by the Episcopal Conferences as they focus on pastoral, theological, and canonical implications of these synodal topics in advance of October 2024 when the Synod of Bishops will reconvene to further discern the matters.
Instrumentum Laboris (June 2023) English/Spanish
The Instrumentum Laboris will form the basis for discernment and discussion among participants at the first session of the Synod of Bishops in October 2023 at the Vatican. This document, issued by the Holy See, is not intended as a conclusive summary, but rather is a text that opens and invites further, more focused, discernment to arrive at specific steps that will promote a more synodal Church for the future.
North American Final Document (April 2023) English/Spanish
The North American Final Document marks the end of the Continental Stage of the Synod on Synodality. The document depicts synodal reflections and feedback gathered through twelve virtual assemblies of more than 1,000 Catholic delegates from the United States and Canada, including the Archdiocese of Louisville. The North American Final Document, along with similar continental reports generated across the world, will be an integral resource for the Synod of Bishops gatherings in Rome in October 2023 and 2024.
Working Document for the Continental Stage (October 2022) English/Spanish
The Working Document for the Continental Stage, produced by the Holy See, is the fruit of the syntheses resulting from the consultation of the People of God in the first phase of the synodal process. The content in this document will be the focus for the time of listening, dialogue, and discernment of the Continental Synodal Assemblies in January–March 2023.
U.S. National Synthesis Document (September 2022) English/Spanish
Bishop Daniel E. Flores of Brownsville, TX, who shepherded the preparation of the U.S. National Synthesis document, writes, “With immense gratitude, I have the distinct honor of sharing the National Synthesis. This pivotal document is the culmination of ten months of intentional listening carried out throughout the Church in the U.S. The synodal consultations, from parishes, dioceses, and national regions express the voices of hundreds of thousands in our local churches.” Bishop Flores further writes, “The publication of this document is not a concluding moment, it is instead an invitation to continue to dialogue and discern, together, those matters that weigh heavily on the hearts and minds of Catholics in the U.S.”
Journeying Together – The Archdiocesan Synthesis (June 2022) English/Spanish
Pope Francis has invited all the baptized of the world to participate in the Synod on Synodality by sharing their experiences, hopes, and concerns for the Church. In the Archdiocese of Louisville, nearly 2,400 people responded to the Holy Father’s invitation by giving voice to their own personal stories. Our archdiocesan synthesis report, Journeying Together, reflects what was heard from the faithful about the Church, both its blessings and its shortcomings. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will blend this document, along with all other diocesan reports across the country, into a national synthesis document for submission to the Holy See in Rome.
Meet Vice Chancellor Tink Guthrie, our Archdiocesan Synod Coordinator, as he shares the fruits of our local Synodal listening:
